Holiday with a business plan

Having recently been on an overseas holiday it struck me how much of the planning process mirrored that of putting a business plan together. My own approach (to a holiday or business plan) may not necessarily align with others but many of the same factors are in play between both plans, regardless of the level of risk or planning chosen.

Obviously I wanted to give my partner and myself the greatest chance of having the best possible holiday we could within our means and resources. Before doing anything else we had to articulate our strategy or vision - what it was we wanted to achieve from the holiday in terms of activities, relaxation etc.

Choosing the destination was next – we could have chosen somewhere safe and familiar or tried something completely new where English wasn’t spoken! [That is the risk profile]. In the end a destination was chosen only a couple of hours flight away but that was also quite unknown and did offer a language challenge.

Then research, research, research!! I got a guide book and used online travel sites and forums to get as much information as possible about where to go, what to do, where to stay etc. The amount of information was staggering but aligning this with our strategy helped to cut it down. Being as specific as possible with your vision helps you keep more focused but on the other hand you may want to allow scope for opportunities and possibilities that may not have been considered.

You can be armed with loads of relevant research and information but the reality can often present something unexpected or challenging. Depending on the level of risk with which you are comfortable, these unknowns can be either obstacles or opportunities.

The next decision was what, if anything, should be pre-arranged or pre-booked. We could have left this to chance and been ‘fun and spontaneous’ but my risk profile and experience told me that spontaneity can be inefficient and not necessarily the best way to get the most out of limited time and resources.

There was a domestic flight where I wanted to be sure of getting seats as there weren’t too many alternatives – similarly I didn’t want to find out that all the good hotels were sold out. So the decision was to pre-book flights and accommodation (only) and to be pre-armed with as much other information as possible. This then allowed for a fair degree of flexibility and spontaneity – within parameters that we controlled.

So when we landed the first challenge was to get from the airport to the hotel – about 50km. The most popular method for tourists was a shuttle but my research told me there was also a public bus for a fraction of the cost, which was comfortable enough but required allowing a bit more time and a bus change. This fitted our strategy so we took this – and had the added benefit of seeing more of local life than just the expressway to the city!

There were many other decisions over the week, not all of which we had prepared for, but the element of chance could have been reduced or even removed if that’s what we had chosen (eg for reasons of time availability or independence). We were happy with the level of risk/spontaneity.

Going back to the business plan (or had I left it?)

1. What is the strategy, vision or goal?
2. With what level of risk are you comfortable? Do you like to ‘wing it’?
3. Do you want (or need) to plan everything you can control (or think you can)?
4. Who are the other stakeholders? A partner, investor or bank will look at this very differently – plans will have to be adjusted accordingly. Trust and experience play a big role.

Finally, I hear you ask, how was the holiday and did the plan work out? Yes it did, and we had a fabulous time thank you! How do you approach your business plan?